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Retirement
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Retirement |
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Bill Shankly loved football so much, that his decision to retire from
the game in 1974 sent shock waves round the world. What those closest to
him had realised all along though, were that the constant strains and
stresses of managing one of the top clubs in the country had taken it's
toll of him. Liverpool had been a very ordinary second division team
when he had taken on the job in 1959 of bringing them up to the level
expected of a big city club.
Off the field too, Shanks had masterminded a rebuilding of Melwood into a quality training facility, and seen Anfield undergo tremendous change and improvement. Furthermore, Shanks had ensured, by his careful grooming of the very capable backroom staff, that managership of the club was to be passed into good hands. All of this had required hard work and an almost constant attention to the affairs of the club, on and off the field. Approaching the age of 60, it's easy to see how he thought 'enough is enough'. Bill was anxious to spend more time with his wife, Ness, and his grandchildren too. There is evidence to suggest that Ness had asked him to consider retirement the season before because she could see the intense strain he was under. What is equally true, of course, is that almost immediately after resigning, Bill had regretted his decision. By the time August came round and the new season kicked into gear, Shanks was back at Melwood, training with the players, enjoying the cameraderie and the chance to put his boots on again. This put the players in an awkward position. Naturally, they referred to him as 'boss', a fact which automatically undermined the new man in the job, Bob Paisley. Liverpool Football Club, now cornered into an unenviable position, took the decision to ban Shankly from Melwood. It was a no-win situation for all concerned. The fans, not knowing the full details, heard only that Shanks was no longer welcome at the training ground, and rumours were rife that he in turn, had turned his back on the club and was looking for employment elsewhere. In a messy few months since winning the F.A. Cup, the club and it's greatest ever manager, looked to have fallen out with each other. The natural reaction to all this is too blame the club. How could they do such a thing and treat him so badly ? The obvious solution, so everyone thought, was to give Shankly a permanent presidential style role within the boardroom, an overseer or godfather position that would have ensured his continued presence at the club without undermining the role of his successor as manager, Bob Paisley. It was, of course, not so simple. |
Shankly announces his retirement in July 1974 |
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Just a few years earlier, one of the that other great triumvate of
Scottish born managers, Matt Busby, had stepped down at Manchester
United and been given just such a presidential style position at the
club. The new manager, Wilf McGuiness, had to work with Busby's last
team with it's creator peering ominously over his shoulder. McGuiness
found this a burden rather than a help. There was confusion at the club
as to who was really running things. Sir Matt still held all the
influence, and it was he the board turned to when McGuiness was promptly
given the sack shortly after taking charge. The rot had set in though,
and United were relgated in 1974, the same year Shankly had announced
his retirement. It would be a fair bet to say the Liverpool board had
kept a watchful eye on events just down the M62 motorway.
It was also clear through the many conversations Shankly had held with board members down the years that he would not entertain any thought of ever joining their ranks. There was deep mistrust that Bill had with white collar managers, stemming from his early days in Glenbuck where mine owners often put thoughts of profit before the safety of miners. Also, he had had run-ins with board members at most of his previous clubs, usually over money and lack of ambition. His biggest reservation about directors though was their generally percieved lack of interest in the game. By and large, they were not football men, and he couldn't understand how they could be involved in the game solely to make money. Liverpool knew all about his feelings on these matters, and they never considered it feasible that Shankly would want a place on the board, no matter what label was put on it. Lastly, once the situation had reached the point where the players at the training ground were still treating him as the boss, there was no alternative but to ask him not to show up again at Melwood. The situation that had arisen was not really anyone's fault. It was a bad set of circumstances that came to a head and resulted in some hurt feelings. Shankly soon got over it however, and he appeared to be busier than ever once he got into retirement swing. If Liverpool felt they didn't need his services any more there were plenty of other clubs who did. He would be forever charging up and down the country looking at players and watching matches for a variety of clubs, as a favour. It wasn't uncommon for a manager to telephone Bill and ask his advice over a disciplinary matter or for his opinion on a formation or strategy. He was as much in love with the game as he had ever been. Living close to Bellefield ( Everton's training ground ) he would often call in there and join in the training sessions, proving the point that many of his barbed comments about Liverpool's great city rivals were no more than psychological shots across the bows. He would talk to anyone about football, go anywhere to put his boots on again, because in simple terms, he just loved the game. |
The Bill Shankly Playing Fields alongside the road where the Shanklys lived. |
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It was a common sight to see him on Sunday morning's watching and encouraging
the local kids playing in the Sunday league games in the park by his house.
The park has now been renamed 'The Bill Shankly Playing Fields'.
Curiously, his retirement brought an unexpected insight to football too. He commented on how much he had learnt about the game in his first year out of it from looking at it through a different perspective. That he was also able to spend more time with his wife and family meant that, in my opinion, he came to see his retirement as an enjoyable part of his life. It is inevitable though, that a great sense of loss and a feeling of frustration should remain amongst Liverpool supporters that Shankly passed away without he and the club he so loved making their peace publicly. As is often the way in life, his death in September 1981 pricked at the consciences of those who had worked with him during his lifetime to finally recognise his achievements and the Shankly Gates, at the Anfield Road end of the ground were duly erected in his honour. Better late than never, though in some eyes, they remained an inadequate testament to the man who had dragged the club to the forefront of European glory until December 1997, when a statue of Shankly, sculpted by a local artist, was placed beneath his beloved Kop. In little under a year, the city of Liverpool had lost both John Lennon and Bill Shankly, two of the central figures in it's meteoric rise to world fame in the 1960s. In one of his immortal lyrics Lennon had written; 'A working class hero is something to be'. He could not have imagined how apt an epitaph that would be to the man who outlived him just a few short months. |